Following the market opening Monday, the Dow traded up 0.06 percent to 16,933.52 while the NASDAQ surged 0.14 percent to 4,327.58. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.09 percent to 1,951.15.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Technology shares surged around 0.33 percent in today’s trading. Top gainers in the sector included Hittite Microwave (NASDAQ: HITT), up 28.3 percent, and Analog Devices (NASDAQ: ADI), up 6.2 percent.

In trading on Monday, healthcare shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.21 percent. Top losers in the sector included China Biologic Products (NASDAQ: CBPO), and Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD).

Top Headline

Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) announced it has submitted a unilaterally binding offer to buy The Hillshire Brands Company (NYSE: HSH) for $63 per share in cash.

The deal is valued at around $8.55 billion, including net debt. Tyson had earlier offered $50 per share for Hillshire. However, Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ: PPC) had offered $55 per share for Hillshire.

Equities Trading UP

Idenix Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: IDIX) shares shot up 231.67 percent to $23.98 after Merck (NYSE: MRK) announced its plans to acquire Idenix for $24.50 per share in cash.

Shares of Hittite Microwave (NASDAQ: HITT) got a boost, shooting up 28.40 percent to $77.76 after Analog Devices (NASDAQ: ADI) announced its plans to buy Hittite Microwave for $78 per share in cash.

Family Dollar Stores (NYSE: FDO) shares were also up, gaining 15.41 percent to $69.86 after Carl Icahn disclosed a brand-new 9.39% stake in the company.

Equities Trading DOWN

Shares of Comverse (NASDAQ: CNSI) were 8.53 percent to $22.83 on Q1 results. The company reported a Q1 loss of $0.72 per share on revenue of $119.0 million.